Departmental Detergents

Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will make it his policy to ensure that no cleaning products or ingredients of cleaning products used by his Department have been tested on animals.

Ann McKechin: The Scotland Office obtains its cleaning services through central procurement contracts set-up by the Scottish Executive or the Ministry of Justice. As part of the procurement process, any specific requirements for using ethically sourced cleaning products would be for the Executive or the Ministry of Justice to consider.

Departmental Surveys

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland pursuant to the Answer of 9 March 2009,  Official Report, column 3W, on departmental surveys, if he will place in the Library a copy of the results of the staff survey undertaken by his Department in 2007.

Ann McKechin: A copy of the Scotland Office staff survey published in 2007 has been placed in the Library of the House.

Business: Crime

Tom Brake: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what recent discussions his Department has had with organisations representing business on  (a) business crime and  (b) recording business crimes separately.

Ian Pearson: Government policy to tackle crime against business, including whether such crime should be recorded separately is overseen by the Home Office. This Department works with the Home Office to inform this policy. BERR is represented on the joint Government/Industry National Retail Crime Steering Group (NRCSG). Officials have had conversations in partnership with the Home Office with a number of national and sector-specific trade bodies.

Heathrow Airport

Justine Greening: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what  (a) meetings and  (b) correspondence on Heathrow expansion which (i) he, (ii) other Ministers in his Department and (iii) officials in his Department have had with representatives from (A) BAA, (B) trades unions, (C) airlines using Heathrow, (D) other corporate bodies and (E) residents from communities affected by Heathrow expansion since 3 October 2008; when each meeting took place; who attended each meeting; and what the subject of each meeting was.

Ian Pearson: holding answer 29 January 2009
	Ministers and officials within the Department for Business Enterprise and Regulatory Reform have not held meetings specifically on Heathrow expansion. However, they have held a number of meetings with business organisations where Heathrow was discussed as part of a broader conversation.
	In addition, between 3 October 2008 and 26 January 2009, the Department for Business Enterprise and Regulatory Reform received a number of correspondence about Heathrow airport from local residents, businesses and business organisations. This included a letter from the chief executive of BAA on 3 October 2008 to Lord Mandelson.

Badgers: Vaccination

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate he has made of the cost of training personnel to trap and vaccinate badgers under the injectable badger vaccine deployment project.

Jane Kennedy: Costs for the injectable badger vaccine deployment project have not yet been finalised and will vary depending on the areas vaccination will take place, as well as other factors.

Fly Tipping: Prosecutions

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs with reference to the answer to the hon. Member for Brentwood and Ongar of 14 January 2008,  Official Report, column 858W, on fly-tipping: prosecutions, if he will provide equivalent figures for 2007-08.

Jane Kennedy: In 2007-08, local authorities and the Environment Agency reported 1,285,300 fly-tipping incidents on the Flycapture system ranging from single black bags to "significant multiple loads".
	1,969 prosecutions were taken against fly-tippers in 2007-08, 1,865 (95 per cent.) of which were successful.
	Prosecution figures only represent cases taken through the court system and do not reflect the wider range of enforcement actions available to local authorities.
	In 2007-08, local authorities also took an additional 179,122 enforcement actions against fly-tippers, consisting of warning letters, statutory notices, fixed penalty notices, formal cautions and injunctions.

Natural Gas: Canvey Island

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  what steps the Environment Agency is taking to investigate the circumstances of the spillage at the Canvey Island Calor Gas site on 15 October 2008; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what discussions the Environment Agency has had with Calor Gas following recent spillages at Calor Gas's Canvey Island site.

Jane Kennedy: The Environment Agency and the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) are the joint competent authority for the site. The incident on the 15 October 2008 involved the spillage of liquid petroleum gas following the failure of pipework. The Environment Agency and the HSE agreed that the HSE would lead the investigation with assistance from the Environment Agency if required.
	As a result of the HSE led investigation, the Environment Agency has not entered into discussions with the company concerning the specific circumstances surrounding the spillage. However, the Environment Agency continues to undertake its normal regulatory activities at the site.

Rabbits

Michael Ancram: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will make an estimate of changes in the wild rabbit population in the last five years.

Huw Irranca-Davies: Rabbit populations can fluctuate widely from year-to-year especially at the local level. However, the most recent mammal data from the Game and Wildlife Conservation Trust National Gamebag Census indicates that the trend for the UK rabbit population is a decline of 19 per cent. for the period 2002-07.

Olympic Games 2012: Construction

Jamie Reed: To ask the Minister for the Olympics how many people are employed on  (a) construction and  (b) development of Olympic venues (i) in London and (ii) elsewhere.

Tessa Jowell: The latest figures published in January 2009 showed that there are 3,315 people working on the Olympic Park in London. The Olympic Delivery Authority expects that 30,000 people in total will be employed on the Olympic Park and the Village over the life of the project, this number will peak at 11,000 in 2010.
	The construction of the Weymouth and Portland Sailing Academy (WPSNA) is already complete. Work to enhance the WPSNA began in March 2008 and was completed in November 2008—the first venue completed for the London 2012 Olympic games and Paralympic games. During this period 115 people were employed in construction on the site.
	Eton Dorney, Broxbourne and the shooting venue at Woolwich are yet to be constructed and will provide further employment opportunities.

Middle East: Armed Conflict

William Hague: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the Answer of 10 March 2009,  Official Report, column 236W, on Navy: deployment, what the outcome was of the conference in London held on 13 March on contingency options directed at countering arms smuggling into Gaza; and what decisions have been made on the UK's contribution to such operations.

Bob Ainsworth: In response to concerns over the flow of weapons to the Gaza Strip, the nations represented at the London Conference on tackling arms smuggling into Gaza agreed and published a 'Program of Action'. This initiative seeks to enhance efforts to prevent and interdict the illicit trafficking of arms, ammunition and weapon component to Gaza and, within the relevant jurisdictions prevent the facilitation of such transfers. A range of options is available for participating governments to consider, including the sharing of information and intelligence, co-ordinated diplomatic engagement and co-ordinating military and law enforcement activities.
	The UK continues to explore a number of contingency options to support this initiative and will attend further meetings of participating states.

Navy: Manpower

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the  (a) required strength,  (b) actual strength and  (c) percentage shortfall is in each trade in the Royal Navy.

Bob Ainsworth: The following table provides information on the liability and actual trained strength as at 1 February 2009 for each trade/specialisation for both officers and ratings/other ranks.
	
		
			  February 2009 
			   Branch  Specialisation  Liability  Regular strength  Surplus/  Deficit (%)  FTRS  Total inc. FTRS  Surplus/  Deficit (%) 
			  Officers  Warfare Air Traffic Controller 80 80 2 0 80 2 
			   Aviator 50 60 23 0 60 23 
			   Communications 30 50 64 0 50 64 
			   Fighter Controller 40 50 11 0 50 11 
			   Electronic Warfare 20 30 74 0 30 74 
			   RN Police 20 20 8 (1)— 20 14 
			   Hydrographer/Metographer 190 160 -13 10 170 -10 
			   Mine Clearance Diver/Mine Warfare 110 130 20 (1)— 140 23 
			   Pilot 430 500 16 (1)— 510 17 
			   Observer 480 350 -27 (1)— 350 -26 
			   Observer or Pilot (1)— 0 n/a 0 0 n/a 
			   Principle Warfare Officer 480 550 14 10 560 16 
			   General Service Warfare 290 440 51 10 450 53 
			   Submariner 320 320 1 (1)— 320 2 
			   Other (1)— 0 n/a 0 0 n/a 
			   Any Warfare 370 0 n/a 0 0 n/a 
			  Warfare Total  2,920 2,750 -6 40 2,780 -4 
			  
			   Engineers Air Engineer 290 310 7 (1)— 310 7 
			   Information Systems 80 80 -3 (1)— 80 -2 
			   Information Systems (Submariner) (1)— (1)— 50 0 (1)— 50 
			   Training Manager 200 220 9 10 220 12 
			   Training Manager (Submariner) 10 20 217 0 20 217 
			   Marine Engineer 250 330 30 (1)— 340 32 
			   Marine Engineer (Submariner) 250 270 7 0 270 8 
			   Weapons Engineer 370 430 17 (1)— 430 18 
			   Weapons Engineer (Submariner) 200 220 13 (1)— 220 14 
			   Any General Service Engineer 50 0 n/a 0 0 n/a 
			   Any Submariner Engineer 20 0 n/a 0 0 n/a 
			   Any Engineer/No Spec 40 0 n/a (1)— (1)— n/a 
			  Engineers Total  1,750 1,880 7 20 1,900 9 
			  
			   Logistics Barrister 20 30 26 0 30 26 
			   Chartered Management Accountant 10 20 128 0 20 128 
			   Any Logistics/No Specialisation 520 410 -20 10 420 -19 
			   Logistics Submariner 20 100 315 0 100 315 
			   Family Services (1)— (1)— -75 0 (1)— -75 
			  Logistics Total  580 560 -3 10 560 -2 
			  
			   Royal Marines General Service 720 640 -12 90 720 0 
			   BS 10 10 12 0 10 12 
			  Royal Marines Total  730 650 -11 90 740 0 
			  
			  Doctors  240 260 9 0 260 9 
			  Dentists  60 60 -5 (1)— 60 -3 
			  Queen Alexandra Royal Naval Nursing Service  100 80 -16 _ 80 -16 
			  Medical Services  60 60 - 4 (1)— 60 -2 
			  Chaplains  80 60 -17 0 60 -17 
			  Careers  (1)— (1)— 0 (1)— (1)— 100 
			  Inter Branch Trainees  _ 30 n/a 0 30 n/a 
			  Officers Total   6,520 6,400 -2 160 6,560 1 
			  
			   Warfare General Service Warfare Specialisation 960 1,060 11 0 1,060 11 
			   Above Water Tactical 510 450 -12 10 450 -11 
			   Above Water Warfare 420 370 -12 10 380 -11 
			   Electronic Warfare 240 200 -16 0 200 -16 
			   Underwater Warfare 230 220 -7 (1)— 220 -6 
			   Communications Information Systems 1,050 1,020 -3 10 1,030 -2 
			   Hydrographer/Metographer 100 90 -7 0 90 -7 
			   Mine Warfare 320 310 -3 (1)— 310 -2 
			   Diver 300 300 -3 (1)— 300 -2 
			   Seaman 850 690 -18 (1)— 700 -18 
			   Survey Recorder 50 50 -3 0 50 -3 
			   Weapons Analyst (1)— (1)— 28 0 (1)— 28 
			   Physical Training Instructor 220 220 -2 (1)— 220 0 
			   RN police 280 270 -3 20 280 2 
			   Telephonists (1)— (1)— -50 0 (1)— -50 
			   Communications Technician 250 260 4 (1)— 260 4 
			  Warfare General Service Total  5,780 5,510 -5 50 5,560 -4 
			  
			   Warfare Aviation Aircrew man 110 140 25 (1)— 140 26 
			   Naval Airman (Aircraft Controller) 150 110 -25 (1)— 120 -24 
			   Naval Airman (Aircraft Handler) 440 420 -5 0 420 -5 
			   Naval Airman (Metographer) 70 70 6 0 70 6 
			   Naval Airman (Photographer) 100 90 -8 0 90 -8 
			   No Spec 0 (1)— n/a 0 (1)— n/a 
			  Warfare Aviation Total  870 830 -4 (1)— 840 -4 
			  
			   Warfare Submariner Coxswain Submariner 40 40 8 0 40 8 
			   Sensors Submariner 370 330 -11 (1)— 330 -10 
			   Tactical Submariner 250 230 -10 (1)— 230 -9 
			   Communications Information Systems Submariner 250 210 -16 (1)— 210 -15 
			  Warfare Submariner Total  910 810 -11 10 820 -10 
			  
			   Engineering General Service Weapons Engineering Technician/Mechanic/Artificer 2,050 2,050 0 10 2,050 0 
			   Marine Engineering Technician/Mechanic/Artificer 3,270 3,070 -6 (1)— 3,070 -6 
			   Education Training & Support 10 (1)— -4 0 (1)— -4 
			   Any Engineer GS (1)— 0 n/a 0  n/a 
			  Engineering General Service Total  5,320 5,120 ¦4 10 5,130 -4 
			  
			   Engineering Submariner Weapons Engineering Technician/Mechanic/Artificer SM 840 880 5 20 890 7 
			   Marine Engineering Technician/Mechanic/Artificer SM 1,340 1,170 -13 40 1,210 -9 
			  Engineering Submariner Total  2,170 2,040 -6 60 2,100 -3 
			  
			   Engineering -Air Engineer Air Engineering Technician/Mechanic/Artificer 3,290 3,160 -4 10 3,170 -3 
			   Naval Airman (Safety Equipment) 180 170 -4 0 170 -4 
			  Engineering - Air Engineer Total  3,470 3,330 -4 10 3,350 -3 
			  
			   Logistics Catering Services (Preparation) 870 800 -8 10 810 -7 
			   Catering Services (Preparation) Submariner 110 140 24 0 140 24 
			   Catering Services (Delivery) 570 530 -8 (1)— 530 -8 
			   Catering Services (Delivery) Submariner 70 60 -9 _ 60 -9 
			   Catering Services - Any Personnel 10 0 n/a 0 0 n/a 
			   Personnel 860 830 -4 10 840 -3 
			   Personnel Submariner 50 60 13 0 60 13 
			   Supply Chain 660 630 -5 (1)— 640 -4 
			   Supply Chain Submariner 70 90 42 (1)— 100 45 
			   Family Services 30 20 -26 0 20 -26 
			   Any Logistics (1)— 0 n/a 0 0 n/a 
			  Logistics Total  3,310 3,170 -4 20 3,190 -4 
			  
			   Medical Dental Hygienist 20 10 -18 0 10 -18 
			   Dental Surgery Assistant 90 90 -2 0 90 -2 
			   Medical Assistant (General Service and Submariner) 650 660 1 0 660 1 
			   Naval Nurse 210 190 -10 0 190 -10 
			   Medical Technical 20 30 38 0 30 38 
			   Any Medical (1)— 0 n/a 0 0 n/a 
			  Medical Total  1,000 990 -1 0 990 -1 
			  
			   Royal Marines General Service 6,000 5,560 -7 110 5,660 -6 
			   Musician 270 260 -5 0 260 -5 
			   Bugler 60 60 -5 0 60 -5 
			  Royal Marines Total  6,330 5,870 -7 110 5,980 -6 
			  
			  Careers  (1)— 0 n/a 150 150 n/a 
			  
			  Any Branch/Spec  100 0 n/a 0 0 n/a 
			  
			  Inter Branch Trainees  0 150 n/a 0 150 n/a 
			  OR Total   29,260 27,810 -5 430 28,240 -3 
			 (1) = 5 or less than 5.  Notes: All figures rounded to nearest 10. Where figure ends in 5, figure rounded to nearest multiple of 20 to prevent systematic bias. Percentages are calculated on original unrounded figures. Some liability lines, such as "Any Warfare", can be filled from a range of different trades. This makes it impossible to show a one-to-one list of liability against strength split by trade. Not all filled posts count towards the liability (e.g. the 150 Careers Service FTRS Other Ranks all fill posts that are not included in the liability). Some trades (e.g. PWOs, MCD/MW) have been merged in the table where this makes comparison between strength and liability easier. Surpluses and deficits shown at branch/trade levels mask significant variations at branch levels. Inter-Branch trainees, trained people in one trade who are retraining for a new trade, count towards the total trained strength, but are not reported against any trade until they become trained in their new trade.

Care Homes: Standards

Jamie Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will ensure extra resources are made available to publicly-owned nursing homes and local primary care trusts where private nursing home providers withdraw their provision.

Phil Hope: It is for local authorities and the national health service to decide how to provide care in their areas, either through direct provision or by contracting with independent sector providers. Local authorities should ensure they have procedures in place to arrange care for residents if they have to move care homes for whatever reason and that capacity exists to deal with such eventualities.
	Councils have received record increases in funding—39 per cent. in real terms—since 1997. The increases, which will rise to 45 per cent. by 2010-11, mean local authorities have the resources they need to arrange care to meet the needs of their local communities.

Members: Correspondence

Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  when he plans to reply to the letter of 5 January 2009 from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton, with regard to Mr E. Warne;
	(2)  when he plans to reply to the letter of 28 January 2009 from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton, with regard to Mr Fethi Souissi.

Ian Pearson: Due to the large volume of correspondence received on these issues there has been a delay in sending some responses. The Treasury hopes to be in a position to reply to the right hon. Member shortly.

Departmental Disciplinary Proceedings

Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  how many civil servants in her Department have been  (a) disciplined and  (b) dismissed for breaches of the Civil Service Code in each of the last three years;
	(2)  pursuant to her Statement of 4 December 2008, if she will place in the Library a list of relevant leaks, by broad category of highly classified material which was passed to the police.

Phil Woolas: h olding answer 9 December 2008
	 Information on breaches of the civil service code is not held centrally, because cases where staff are disciplined or dismissed are recorded in relation to the category of offence (for instance, abuse of IT or general misconduct). Collating this information would incur disproportionate cost.
	But the figures in relation to all discipline and dismissal cases, on disciplinary grounds, attendance grounds and efficiency grounds in Home Office HQ and the UK Border Agency for the last three years are:
	
		
			  Numbers of staff dismissed 
			   Home Office HQ  UK Border Agency 
			 2006 10 62 
			 2007 6 91 
			 2008 6 88 
		
	
	
		
			  Numbers of staff disciplined 
			   Home Office HQ  UK Border Agency 
			 2006 16 410 
			 2007 41 573 
			 2008 30 550 
		
	
	The police were passed papers relating to a range of identified leaks from the Home Office. It is Home Office policy not to comment on the nature of leaked material.

Dual Nationality

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer of 23 March 2009,  Official Report, column 116W, on dual nationality, where the information requested is held; and if she will collect and publish it.

Shahid Malik: There is no requirement under the British Nationality Act 1981 for a person to renounce their previous nationality when acquiring British citizenship. Nor is there any bar on holding another nationality at the same time as British citizenship, for example where one nationality is held by birth and the other by descent.
	The Identity and Passport Service (IPS) does not request information about applicant's dual nationality as part of the application for a British passport there is, therefore, no information held by the IPS or Home Office to provide a response to this question.
	Furthermore if a British passport holder subsequently gains the nationality of another country they are not required to inform the IPS or the Home Office.

Prostitution

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer of 11 March 2009,  Official Report, columns 468-9W, on prostitution, what changes were made to the Policing and Crime Bill as a result of the responses received.

Alan Campbell: The responses to the Home Office's letter of 26 September were received before the introduction of the Policing and Crime Bill. The responses expressed a range of views, which were taken into consideration in conjunctions with the findings of the Government's 'Tackling the Demand for Prostitution: A Review' and contributed as part of this process to the development of measures of clauses 13,14, 18,19 and 20 of the Policing and Crime Bill.

Departmental Internet

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Welwyn, Hatfield of 3 February 2009,  Official Report, columns 988-90W, on the departmental internet, how many hits each of the websites maintained by his Department received in each of the last 12 months.

Shaun Woodward: The number of hits each of the websites maintained by my Department received in each of the last 12 months is shown in the following table.
	
		
			  Month  Youth Justice Agency (youthjusticeagencyni.gov.uk)  Northern Ireland Prison Service (niprisionservice.gov.uk)  Organised Crime Task Force (octf.gov.uk) 
			 February 2009 88258 1045255 50245 
			 January 2009 104992 1144841 60020 
			 December 2008 63555 1048704 55750 
			 November 2008 (1)n/a 910863 61796 
			 October 2008 89133 995649 63891 
			 September 2008 87200 895712 58327 
			 August 2008 70935 1438674 63271 
			 July 2008 81974 1486028 69260 
			 June 2008 78819 703248 63059 
			 May 2008 94164 695383 61091 
			 April 2008 88663 736815 62760 
			 March 2008 44026 731811 54530 
			 (1) November figures not available due to a reporting problem.

Departmental Marketing

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland pursuant to the answer of 5 February 2009,  Official Report, column 1415W, on departmental marketing, for what reason the average expenditure increased in the year 2007-08.

Shaun Woodward: The additional expenditure in 2007-08 relates primarily to the Fireworks Safety Campaign and the public appointment of a new Police Ombudsman for Northern Ireland.
	The Northern Ireland Office's procurement policy includes provisions to achieve best value for money in procurement of goods and other services.

Departmental Sick Leave

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many staff in his Department were recorded as having been on sick leave for over 12 months on 31 December in each of the last five years.

Paul Goggins: The following table details the number of staff in the Northern Ireland Office recorded as having had a period of absence of over 12 months on 31 December in each of the last five years for which figures are available.
	
		
			  As at December each year  Number 
			 2004 0 
			 2005 1 
			 2006 2 
			 2007 1

Police Service of Northern Ireland: Recruitment

Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what percentage of the Police Service of Northern Ireland was Roman Catholic as at 1 January 2009.

Paul Goggins: That is an operational matter for the Chief Constable. I have asked him to reply directly to the hon. Member, and a copy of his letter will be placed in the Library of the House.

Community Relations

Patrick Mercer: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government with reference to the answer to the right hon. Member for Leicester East of 18 June 2008,  Official Report, column 947W, on community relations: extremism, what projects  (a) were implemented in 2007-08 and  (b) will have been implemented in 2008-09 to support institutions or individuals vulnerable to radicalisation under the Prevent strand of Project Contest.

Vernon Coaker: I have been asked to reply.
	The following projects were implemented to support institutions or individuals vulnerable to radicalisation in 2007-08:
	Two police-led local multi-agency initiatives.
	One directly-funded intervention project.
	The following projects are being or will have been implemented to support institutions or individuals vulnerable to radicalisation in 2008-09:
	Eight projects supporting schools and further and higher education institutions.
	13 police-led projects aimed at delivering Objectives 2&3 of the Prevent Strategy.
	40 projects across the youth justice estate
	Two directly-funded intervention projects
	Nine police-led local multi-agency initiatives
	Guidance on ethical considerations when undertaking research into extremism.

Domestic Waste: Waste Disposal

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Bromley and Chislehurst of 2 February 2009,  Official Report, column 974W, on waste management: South East, what guidance the Waste Improvement Network has given to local authorities on the collection of household waste.

Jane Kennedy: I have been asked to reply.
	The Waste Improvement Network (WIN) has been developed by the Improvement and Efficiency South East (IESE) to bring together waste management information and to support local authorities in procurement and decision making. IESE is one of nine Regional Improvement and Efficiency Partnerships (RIEPs) which support local government efficiency and improvement.
	WIN does not provide direct advice. It provides information, including case studies and reports on activity in and experiences of councils around the country. This helps to ensure councils are up to date on what other councils are doing and able to learn from one another's experiences.

Departmental Public Expenditure

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what  (a) capital funds and  (b) resource funds his Department has brought forward from its (i) 2009-10 and (ii) 2010-11 budgets for use in (A) 2008-09 and (B) 2009-10; and what schemes this funding is being used to support.

Jim Knight: Department for Children Schools and Families have identified:
	  (a) Nil amounts to be brought forward to be spent in 2008-09.
	  (b) Up to £927.5 million to be brought forward from the 2010-11 financial year to the 2009-10 financial year as provided in the table:
	
		
			  £ 000 
			  Programme  Capital a mount  Resource a mount  Total 
			 Primary Capital Strategy 76,149 0 76,149 
			 City Technology College 147 0 147 
			 Locally Co-ordinated Voluntary Aided Programmes 50,684 0 50,684 
			 Devolved Formula Capital -Voluntary Aided Schools 72,325 0 72,325 
			 Devolved Formula Capital 311,565 0 311,565 
			 Local Authority Modernisation 234,523 0 234,523 
			 Targeted Capital—14-19 Diplomas and Special Educational Needs 142,526 0 142,526 
			 Devolved Formula Capital-Academies 5,195 0 5,195 
			 Devolved Formula Capital-Non Maintained Special Schools 886 0 886 
			 Playing Opportunities 30,000 2,500 32,500 
			 Total 924,000 2,500 927,500

Colombia: Military Aid

Lindsay Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the answers of 25 November 2008,  Official Report, columns 1195-6W and 12 January 2009,  Official Report, column 358W, on Colombia: armed forces, for what reason the per capita cost of providing training to members of the Colombian armed forces decreased between 2006-07 and 2007-08.

Gillian Merron: An increased number of individuals attended training workshops in 2007-08, which decreased the per capita cost, but not the overall cost, of this training. The cost of our bi-lateral human rights and demining programmes with the Colombian armed forces covers flights, expenses and administration costs of the UK trainers involved.

Departmental Recruitment

Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the answer of 5 March 2009,  Official Report, column 1746W, on departmental recruitment, what estimate he has made of the annual salary cost of  (a) permanent,  (b) temporary and  (c) agency staff recruited by his Department in each year since 2005-06.

Gillian Merron: The information requested is as follows:
	 (a) (i) The estimated annual salary costs for permanent staff recruited by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) , including staff recruited on fixed term contracts of employment of one year or more, in each of the last four financial years is as follows:
	
		
			   £ million 
			 2005-06 4.253 
			 2006-07 7.427 
			 2007-08 3.639 
			 2008-09 5.508 
		
	
	These are not the actual pay costs of the staff recruited but have been calculated using the numbers recruited given in the answer of 5 March 2009,  Official Report, column 1746W, and the average salary, employers national insurance and employers pension contribution rates for the relevant financial years.
	 (a) (ii) The annual salary costs for permanent staff recruited by FCO Services, including staff recruited on fixed term contracts of employment of one year or more, in each of the last four financial years is as follows:
	
		
			   £ million 
			 2005-06 1.351 
			 2006-07 2.464 
			 2007-08 1.463 
			 2008-09 2.645 
		
	
	These costs have been calculated on the same basis as at  (a) (i).
	 (b) It is difficult to identify the individual costs of temporary staff, who may work irregular hours, and this could be done only at disproportionate cost. The total FCO costs for temporary staff, including those recruited in-year and reported in the answer of 5 March 2009,  Official Report, column 1746W, for the four financial years were:
	
		
			   £ million 
			 2005-06 8.799 
			 2006-07 5.007 
			 2007-08 1.480 
			 2008-09 2.381 
		
	
	The figure for 2008-09 is projected using the expenditure for the first three quarters.
	 (c) Total FCO costs for agency staff in the four financial years were:
	
		
			   £ million 
			 2005-06 3.730 
			 2006-07 3.359 
			 2007-08 5.500 
			 2008-09 5.099 
		
	
	The figure for 2008-09 is projected using the expenditure for the first three quarters.

Middle East: Armed Conflict

Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the reply to the right hon. Member for Devizes of 27 January 2009,  Official Report, columns 390-1W, on what date in December 2008 he was first made aware that rockets were fired into Israel from Gaza.

Bill Rammell: We monitor rocket attacks from Gaza closely and make very clear our condemnation of them. My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary visited Sderot in November 2008 and I visited Ashkelon in December 2008 to see the effects. Our embassy in Tel Aviv reported rockets being fired at Israel on 3 December 2008.
	However, my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary is also well aware of the rocket attacks against Israel over the past several years.

Middle East: Armed Conflict

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports he has received on the number of Israelis killed in terrorist attacks since 3 February 2009; and if he will make a statement.

Bill Rammell: According to the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs there have been two Israelis killed in terrorist attacks since 3 February 2009. The UK condemns all terrorist activity. We call on all groups to pursue their objectives through peaceful means: the only way forward in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories is through dialogue; violence can lead nowhere but to more violence and suffering.

Terrorism: Finance

Paul Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the answer of 10 March 2009,  Official Report, column 227W, on terrorism: finance, to which  (a) countries and  (b) projects the £20 million spent in 2008-09 on tackling radicalisation and promoting understanding overseas was allocated.

Bill Rammell: In order to protect the safety and security of organisations delivering sensitive projects overseas, we do not plan to publish a breakdown by country or by project of the £20 million allocated in 2008-09 to tackling radicalisation and promoting understanding overseas.

Terrorism: Finance

Paul Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the answer of 10 March 2009,  Official Report, columns 226-7W, on terrorism: finance, if he will publish details of the monitoring process agreed between the Prime Minister's Delivery Unit and the National Audit Office.

Bill Rammell: We have agreed a system with my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister's Delivery Unit and the National Audit Office under which baselines indicating the level of capability to effectively counter radicalisation in each country have been established. Projects designed to improve each country's capability are evaluated on completion to assess how they contribute to an improvement. External verification is an important part of this, and lessons learned from the evaluation are used to improve the future design of projects.

Written Questions: Government Responses

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he plans to answer question 259021 on China, tabled on 25 February 2009; what the reason is for the time taken to answer; and if he will make a statement.

Gillian Merron: This question was answered on 23 March 2009,  Official Report, column 23W. The delay in replying was due to administrative error.

Members: Correspondence

Julian Brazier: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change when he plans to reply to the letters of 5 November 2008 and 9 January 2009 from the hon. Member for Canterbury, sent on behalf of a constituent, Mr Scott Collins.

Joan Ruddock: I replied to the hon. Member on 25 March 2009 and apologise for the long delay, which was due to the departmental reorganisation.

Africa: Agriculture

Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development pursuant to the answer of 26 February 2009,  Official Report, columns 1007-8W, on loans, if he will make an assessment of the likely effects on his Department's assistance programmes for smallholders in  (a) Malawi and  (b) Africa of recent increases in the price of fertiliser.

Michael Foster: The Department for International Development (DFID) is supporting a farm inputs subsidy programme in Malawi through our £22 million per annum budget support as well as a further £20 million commitment for agriculture over four years (2007-11). These efforts have delivered affordable seed and fertiliser to 1.5 million smallholder families, and led to a strong harvest for a fourth successive year. As a result, Malawi's economic growth reached 8.7 per cent. in 2008, and food security has significantly improved. For example, in the current lean season, 670,000 people are at risk of hunger; compared to 5 million in 2005. Despite the high fertiliser prices during 2008, we expect that our support will still help the same number of people.
	Increases in fertiliser prices were a major challenge for Africa's farmers in 2008. At a global level, prices reached a high of almost $900 per tonne in late 2008 but the price of urea has now fallen to around $300 per tonne. However, the availability of foreign exchange, which has become even scarcer in the current economic downturn, means that fertiliser use will still be limited in many countries.

RMS St Helena

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development on what dates  (a) the discussions on the construction of RMS St Helena commenced,  (b) the approval for construction was given,  (c) construction started and  (d) the vessel commenced her maiden voyage.

Michael Foster: Economic Consultants Ltd. carried out an options study into the replacement for the original RMS St. Helena in 1984.
	Approval for her construction was given in November 1987, and a contract was signed with Hall Russell for her construction in December 1988. Her maiden voyage commenced in November 1990.

RMS St Helena

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what the projected  (a) lifespan and  (b) cost of RMS St Helena was when it was commissioned; and what the cost to the public purse was on completion.

Michael Foster: While there is no definitive figure, the RMS St. Helena could be expected to have an economic lifespan of 20 to 25 years. The RMS St. Helena has now reached a stage where Lloyds Registry and the Marine and Coastguard Agency require annual inspections in dry dock to maintain her Class 1 Passenger certificate.
	The original contract with Hall Russell for the construction of the RMS St. Helena was signed in the amount of £19.4 million. The final cost to the public purse following completion of the work by Appledore after Hall Russell went into receivership was £31.8 million.

RMS St Helena

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if he will estimate the cost to the public purse of a replacement vessel for RMS St Helena.

Michael Foster: Estimates carried out during the 2005 feasibility study and updated in 2007 put the cost of a replacement vessel at between approximately £35 million and £75 million, depending on the country of origin. No decision will be taken on whether to replace the RMS St. Helena pending the completion of the public consultation I announced on 16 March.